13.0222 children and the Internet

Humanist Discussion Group (humanist@kcl.ac.uk)
Sat, 2 Oct 1999 05:06:00 +0100 (BST)

Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 13, No. 222.
Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King's College London
<http://www.princeton.edu/~mccarty/humanist/>
<http://www.kcl.ac.uk/humanities/cch/humanist/>

[1] From: Hope Greenberg <hope.greenberg@uvm.edu> (20)
Subject: Re: 13.0210 children and the Internet

[2] From: "Norman D. Hinton" <hinton@springnet1.com> (4)
Subject: Re: 13.0214 children, the Internet, ourselves

--[1]------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 02 Oct 1999 04:52:51 +0100
From: Hope Greenberg <hope.greenberg@uvm.edu>
Subject: Re: 13.0210 children and the Internet

There have been several eloquent replies to Willard's comments about
children, lap-time, books, chairs and computers, so I won't re-state,
but simply add one more image:
My elder daughter, up until a year ago, showed no particular interest in
computers-- probably a "first daughter can't like what Mom likes"
response. Last year she discovered chat rooms. This year it is not
uncommon to find her curled up and perched precariously on the chair in
front of the computer reading a book and "chatting" at the same time.
Sometimes it's chat about her homework with her classmates, sometimes
it's chat about that room's topic with her room friends while she's
doing her homework. I ask her if she's comfortable like that. "Well, of
course, Mom." (Oh to be young and have rubber bones again.) I ask her if
she can do her homework like that. "I'm a teenager, Mom, multitasking is
what we do."
My younger daughter still does lap time, or sometimes it's just "ear
time." Location is determined by what we're reading, whether I'm reading
to her (couch, chair, by computer) or is she's reading to me (couch,
chair, computer, kitchen floor while I do the washing up, etc.)

- Hope

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hope.greenberg@uvm.edu, U of Vermont

--[2]------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 02 Oct 1999 04:53:07 +0100
From: "Norman D. Hinton" <hinton@springnet1.com>
Subject: Re: 13.0214 children, the Internet, ourselves

I'm always on guard when I read what adults think children should or
should not do. It's been my experience that children do what they damn
please, only making enough concessions to adults to keep the fiction
that they are obeying. And when you think of the dumb things that
adults want children to do, it's a good thing they don't do them.

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